October 2026 (1) - Flipbook - Page 19
For a person looking to get into
Black Powder ri昀氀e match shooting, the Desert International is
the single most e昀昀ective event
you can go to to speed up your
learning curve. Because you
will be completely immersed in
the experience over those eight
days, you will gain tremendous
experience in a very short period of time. Far faster than you
could do it on your own.
In the three years that I’ve gone
to this match, I have 昀椀nished
昀椀rst in an event, and I have also
昀椀nished last. I have experienced
the so-called thrill of victory,
and also the agony of defeat.
The main reason, though, and
the reason that will keep me
going back every single year
God Bless Black Powder!
(as long as I’m physically able)
is that I learn a tremendous
amount. I gain a huge amount
of experience in those eight
days. Far more than I could ever
achieve working by myself or
even with another friend.
Some matches, such as the
Quigley Match, are huge social
events. While we do socialize
in Phoenix, the atmosphere is
a lot more subdued and a lot
more serious. These are serious shooters coming together
to make a serious e昀昀ort at this
match. We don’t have a retail
row or other distractions. This
is about shooting and pulling
targets and completely immersing yourself in the experience.
We shoot from 08:00 hours to
about 16:00 hours. We have the
Pledge of Allegiance at about
07:30 hours. This match is all
about those people looking to
seriously get into black powder
ri昀氀e shooting, I hope you will
consider attending this event.
There are many Airbnb‘s in the
area which o昀昀er excellent accommodation at prices highly
competitive against local motels.
Ben Avery also sports a campground which has many dozens
of spaces with full RV hookups
at great prices. There’s plenty of
retail dining and shopping in the
area. On top of that, the Ben Avery range is one of the very nicest
ranges in the entire nation. You
will not get an experience like
this anywhere else.
19
